The whole package

Labels can be deceiving when it comes to healthy snacks for children.

By Paula Goodyer

May 4, 2013 — 3.00am

The words on the front of a pack of Potato Stix are reassuring - 75 per cent less fat than regular potato chips, no preservatives and no artificial colours or flavours. But the ingredients list on the flip side reveals there's not much else in there either, unless you think a mix of potato powder, rice flour, palm oil, salt and vinegar flavour - and anticaking agent - counts as real food.

I wouldn't mind so much if the product's brand name - Healtheries Kidscare - didn't imply it's somehow a wholesome snack for children. Does potato powder mixed with palm oil really qualify as nourishing food? Or have we reached a point where ''less fat'' and ''no artificial colours'' are enough to suggest a food is good for kids?

Tuck in: Fruit and home-made lunches are a better option than most packaged products.Credit:Kitty Hill

It's common knowledge snack foods such as chips aren't the best to pack in a lunchbox, but there's a grey area of other processed snacks aimed at kids that aren't great either - it's just the packaging makes them sound healthier. For busy parents looking for easy lunchbox options, these foods can appear to be the answer. Kellogg's LCM Split Stix made with rice bubbles, for instance, has ''all the goodness of rice'', according to the front of the pack, yet their fibre content is a tiny 0.4 grams. Kellogg's hasn't been stingy with sweetener, though - Split Stix is more than 30 per cent sugar.

Reading labels such as this, it seems there's a question that needs to be asked before buying these products: will this food actually nourish my child or is it just filler?

Advertisement

"You try to get something easy that's healthy and when it says 'low fat, no sugar, no artificial colours', you think it's a healthier option," says Angela Mallon, a spokesperson for the Parents' Jury, a network of parents, grandparents and carers dedicated to helping children eat healthier. ''Parents need to be able to read labels quickly and the food industry has a responsibility to create labels parents can read at a glance - that's why we support traffic-light labelling."

One way of navigating snack food labels more easily is FoodSwitch, the free smartphone app developed by the George Institute for Health and health insurance company Bupa that lets you scan barcodes on packaged foods using the camera on your phone. The app then gives information about a product's nutritional make-up and a list of healthier choices. Even simpler is sidestepping packages and providing fresh food snacks. There's no need to read the label on a piece of fruit, Mallon says.

Pre-packaged foods might seem more convenient, but healthier DIY options aren't hard work if you have a plan and a few reusable containers - and they're generally less expensive than packaged snacks, says Lucy Westerman, a parent of two and member of the Parents' Jury.

Westerman has a lunchbox plan stuck to the fridge and does some advance preparation on the weekend that includes filling small containers with snacks such as cherry tomatoes and cheese cubes or home-made popcorn. She bakes a wholemeal fruit loaf or mini savoury muffins and freezes them in portions. She also creates her own version of packaged biscuits and dip combos with containers of rice crackers paired with hummus or avocado mashed with lemon juice and cream cheese.

"I think it's harder for parents who are new to the school routine but once you get into a rhythm it's not hard," Westerman says. "My approach is to make every mouthful count. Occasionally you have to have some leeway and put in a surprise. To me, school is where kids go to nourish their minds, and to do that they need fuel to nourish their bodies - not just fillers."